Knitting machine



Aug. 15, 1939 y w MEHNERT 2,169,469

KNITTING MACHINE Filed April 29, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR:

Vllklflrt l/all'er HEHI/ERT Au 15, 1939 v. w. MEHNERT 2,169,469

KNITTING ucarun Filed April 29, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTflR mm": mm,- HEHNERZX;

Patented Aug. 15, 1939,

' UNITED. STATES PATENT; OFFICE- tlengesellschaft, Siegmar- Schonau, Germany, a company of Germany ApplicatioinAprll salsa-1, Serial No. 139,604

Germany May 2, 1936 10 Claims.

The invention relates to knitting machines and more particularly to those of flat type.

One object of the invention is to provide a new guiding and controlling mechanism for the carriage and a driving device having obliquely positioned friction rollers which arepressed against a. rotating shaft to control the direction of motion and the speed of the carriage according to the angle of their position. In these driving devices the shaft and consequently also the friction wheels with their control mechanism are situated laterally of the carriage guides and, when they are mounted'on the carriage itself, they load the latter in one-sided manner, so that jamming may result. In order to prevent this, according to the present invention, the casing or housing carrying the friction rollers is mounted in special guide tracks and coupled with the carriage in such a way that only the axial forces for the car- 1 riage movement are transmitted, but'no loading moments.

Another object of the invention is to suspend the sliding carriage on rails situated above and distant from the needle bed to prevent jamming all over the needle bed.

The control mechanism, according to the invention, which brings about the change-over of the friction rollers from the oblique position for one direction of movement into the oblique position for the opposite direction, is so arranged that, upon the change of direction, a uniform retardation and re-acceleration of the highest pos-' sible amount is produced, eliminating the danger of the given speedbeing altered unintentionally and the danger of the rollers remaining in the middle position, where they are without effect upon the axial carriage movement and avoiding furthermore, the slipping of the friction rollers on the rotating shaft.

The invention is illustrated by the accompanying drawings, which show a schematic representation of the arrangement according to the invention.

and toguide the sliding carriage more accurately Fig. 1 being a side elevation of anembodlment Fig. 6 a plan on the casing carrying the friction rollers.

In the drawings the carriage I bearing the knitting cams 2 is placed on the needle bed 3 by being suspended through U-shaped bridges. 4 the 5 upper parts of which form horizontal cross rods I. The U-shaped bridges l bear the roller pairs 6 and I.

The carriage is supported by the rollers 6 onthe rails 6 and is guided in lateral direction by 10 the rollers I. The rails 8 for their part are secured on both front ends 9 of the needle bed 3 by supports 10, one of which only is shown in Fig. 2 on the left side.

The upper part of the carriage I is provided 15 ing rods I6 attached to the frame of the knit- 20 ting machine behind the needle bed 3 and serves to move the carriage I along the needle bed. The friction rollers I4 are held by supports connected to spindles I8 journalled in the casing I3 and are pressed against-the driving shaft l5 by means 25 of springs. The driving shaft may be driven by a motor (not shown) with a constant number of rotations. The axis of the friction rollers Il may be adjusted in a parallel or inclined direction relative to the axis of the driving shaft I5 by means 30 of an adjusting device connected to the above' mentioned spindles II and to bedescribed later on. If the friction rollers ll are in neutral posi-' tion, 1, e., if the axes of the friction rollers ll are in parallel relationship with respect to the 35 axis of the driving shaft IS, the drivingshaft will rotate the friction rollers II but will not cause amovement of the casingjll and the carriage I connected therewith along their guiding means It and I respectively, as the friction rollers roll .40 upon the shaft I5 along a circle. If, however, the friction rollers I4 are in active position, i. e., if the axes of the friction rollers I4 are inclined to the axis of the driving shaft IS, the driving shaft will rotate the friction rollers and cause a movement of the casing I3 and the carriage I connected therewith along their guiding means I6 and 8 respectively, as the friction rollers roll upon the shaft I5 along a helical line andtheir supports are in a fixed position with respect to the casing IS. The speed of the carriage I depends on the adjusted pitch of the helical line or angle between the axes of the friction rollers I4 and driving shaft II. Thus, the operation of the drivingmissimilartothecooperation iii between a threaded spindle and a nut with the exception that the pitch may be changed by adjusting the relationship between therollers i4 and the shaft, while the pitch of a threaded spindle cannot be changed. Depending on the adjustment of the axes of the rollers It relative totheaxisoftheshaft ll, thecarriage l willbe moved in a forward or backward direction along the rails I.

The adjusting device for the regulation of the 5 speed of the-carriage i and for the control of the movement of the carriage in a forward or backward direction comprises a plurality of levers ll, one end of which being firmly secured to the free ends of the spindles It, the other end of which being rotatably mgaged with recesses of racks ll slidably mounted in the wall of the easing it. A movement of said racks ll causing a rotation of the spindles It and an adjustment of the angle between the axes of the rollers i4 and the shaft ll through the levers I! may be obtained by a rocking movement of a double toothed segment II en agin with said racks II, arranged opposite to each other. The toothed, segment II is securedto the inner end of apin fl jam-nailed in the wall of the casing it; The outer end of I the pin 2| carries a bail-like member 22 slidably engaged with two parallel bars 28 extending over the entire length of the machine. These bars are attached to the levers 24 rigidly mounted on the likewise continuous shaft II. Mounted loosely rotatable on the shaft II is a lever 2 which,

through the push rod 21, is shifted by a disc cam 28 from one limiting position into the other symmetrically corresponding one, at each reversal of the carriage I.

A striking lever 20, which is rigidly mounted on the shaft 2|, is resiliently coupled to the lever II. latedbymeans ofstrikingcamsorstops II which can beshifted towards or away from each other on an adjusting spindle II which is provided with aleft and right-handed thread and is moved by means of a hand-wheel ll.- The weight of the actuating bars 23 and of the lever 24 is compensated by balance-weights II.

The-kind of elastic coupling between the levers 2C and 20 is normally kept in the mid-position of Fig. 3 by parts 88, whose striking pins it are connected together by a tension spring ll, so

that the lever 2| oscillates with the lever 20 until it strikes against one of the stops 8|. Then, against the tension of the spring ii, the lever 2t continues further in itsv movement, as shown in P 8. 3 whilst the lever Il-and with it the bars a as well'as the friction rollers ll-remains in the position determined by the stop II for this particular stroke of the carriage.

By suitably shaping the flanks of the disc cam II, it ispossible to thus influence the reversing,

'He'reby the time used for reversing the carriag willbetheshortestpossibleone. I

The deflection of this lever 10 can be regu- I claim:-

l. A flat knitting machine comprising a needle bed. a carriage provided with knitting cams, rails forming a guideway, said rails being arranged above'said needle bed, a U-shaped support for the suspension of said carriage above said needle bed, and a plurality of horizontally and vertically arranged rollers, said rollers being mounted on said U-shaped support and arranged to roll on surfaces of said rails for the movable arrangementof the u-shaped support on said guideway,

the free ends of the legs of'said U-shaped support being attached to intermediate points of said carriage, the legs of said U-shaped support being of a length providing a space between said guideway and said carriage and rendering the needle bed accessible.

- 2. A flat knitting machine comprising a carrifle provided with knitting cams, it driving shaft adapted to be driven by a motor, an actuating casing, guiding members, said actuating casing being movably arranged on said guiding members, a coupling member, said coupling member con-' necting said carriage with said actuating casing.

and actuating means, said actuating means being within said actuating casing and engaging with said driving shaft. I

3. A flat knitting machine comprising a needle bed, a carriage provided with knitting cams, a guideway arranged above said needle bed, a support for the suspension of said carriage above said needlebed, said support being movabiy arranged on said guideway, means connecting said support with said carriage, a driving shaft adapted to be driven by a motor, an actuating casing, guiding members arranged independently of said guideway, said actuating casing being movabiy on said guideway, means connecting said support with said carriage, a driving shaft adapted to be driven by a motor, an actuating casing. guiding members arranged independently of said guideway, said actuating casing being movabiy arranged on said guiding members, a coupling memher, said coupling member connecting said car-g riage with said actuating casing, actuating means adapted to operate said casing with different speeds and in opposite directions, said actuating means being within said actuating casing and en ging with said driving shaft, and adjusting means for the adjustment'of the operation of said actuating means.

5. 'A flat knitting machine comprising a needle bed, a carriage provided with knitting cams, a guideway arranged above said needle bed. a support for the suspension of said carriage above saidneedle bed, said support being movabiy arranged on said guideway, means connecting said support with said carriage, a driving shaft adapted to be driven by a motor. an actuating casing. guiding members arranged independently of said guideway, said actuating casing being movabiy arranged on said guiding members. a coupling member, said coupling member connecting said carriage with said actuating casing, friction roli- 1b ers, said friction rollers being adjustably arranged within said actuating casing and being pressed against said driving shaft, a mechanism adapted to adjust the angle between the axes of said friction rollers and said driving shaft for the operation of said casing with different speeds and in opposite directions, and a cam, said cam being connected with said mechanism for the control of the adjusting movements thereof.

6. A flat knitting machine comprising a needle bed, a carriage provided with knitting cams, a guideway arranged above said needle bed, a support for the suspension of said carriage above said needle bed, said support being movably arranged on said guideway, means connecting said support with said carriage, a driving shaft adapted to be driven by a motor, an actuating casing, guiding members arranged independently of said guideway, said actuating casing being movably arranged on said guiding members, a coupling member, said coupling member connecting said carriage with said actuating casing, friction rollers, said friction rollers being adjustably arranged within said actuating casing and being pressed against said driving shaft, a mechanism adapted to adjust the angle between the axes of said friction rollers and said driving shaft for the operation of said casing with different speeds and in opposite directions, a cam, said cam being connected with said mechanism for the control of the adjusting movements thereof, and adjustable stops adapted to limit the movements of said mechanism.

7. A flat knitting machine, comprising a needle bed, a carriage provided with knitting cams, a guideway arranged above saidneedle bed, a support for the suspension of said carriage above said needle bed, said support being movably arranged on said guideway, means connecting said support with said carriage, a driving shaft adapted to be driven by a motor, an actuating casing, guiding members arranged independently of said guideway, said actuating casing being movably arranged on said guiding members, a coupling member, said coupling member connecting said carriage with said actuating casing, friction rollers, said. friction rollers being adjustably arranged within said actuating casing and being pressed against said driving shaft, a mechanism adapted to adjust the angle between the axes of said friction rollers and said driving shaft for the operation of said casing with different speeds and in opposite directions, a controlling member rigidly connected to said mechanism and adapted to control the movements thereof, adjustable stops adapted to limit the movements of said controllinl member, a cam adapted to actuate said controlling member, and elastic means arranged between said cam and said controlling member.

8. A flat knitting machine comprising a needle bed, a carriage provided with knitting cams, a support for the suspension of said carriage above said needle bed, said support having the form of an inverted U, rollers arranged on the upper portion of said support, a guideway arranged above said needle bed, said rollers contacting said guideway, said U-shaped support having its legs depending from its base to points below said guideway, and the free ends of the legs of said U-shaped support being attached to-intermediate points of said carriage, thus providing a space between said guideway and said carriage and rendering the needle bed accessible.

9. A flat knitting machine comprising a needle bed, a carriage provided with knitting cams, uprights, said uprights being attached to said needle bed, a support for the suspension of said carriage above said needle bed, said support having the form of an inverted U, rollers arranged on the upper portion of said support, rails forming a guideway, said rails being arranged on said uprights above said needle bed, said rollers contacting said rails, said U-shaped support having its legs depending from its base to points below said guideway, and the free ends of the legs of said U-shaped' support being attached to intermediate points of said carriage, thus providing a space between said guideway and said carriage and rendering the needle bed accessible.

10. Aflat knitting machine comprising a needle bed, a carriage provided with knitting cams, a support for the suspension of said carriage above said needle bed, said support having the form of an inverted U, rollers arranged on the upper portion of said support, a guideway arranged above said needle bed, said rollers contacting'said guideway, said U-shaped support having its legs depending from its base to points below said guideway, the free ends of the legs of said U-' shaped support being attached to intermediate points of said carriage, thus providing a space between said guideway and said carriage and rendering the needle bed accessible, and driving means adapted to actuate said carriage.

VOIKHART WALTER MEHNERT. 

